Butch Warren's first professional job was playing in his father Edward Warren's group at age 14. Early on, the bassist worked locally in the Washington, D.C., area, most notably with Stuff Smith. In 1958, he moved to New York to play with Kenny Dorham at the Five Spot and stayed in town throughout most of his career. During the next six years, Warren was in great demand for club work and appeared on many recordings, particularly dates for the Blue Note label led by Joe Henderson, Jackie McLean, Stanley Turrentine, Donald Byrd, Herbie Hancock, Dexter Gordon, Sonny Clark, and Dorham. He was a member of Thelonious Monk's quartet from 1963-1964 and then moved back to Washington, D.C., where he worked on a television show from 1965-1966.

You can still find Butch playing at many local DC jazz venues.

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Freddie Redd is an American hard bop pianist and composer.

After a period in the Army (1946-49) he worked with drummer Johnny Mills, and then in New York played with Tiny Grimes, Cootie Williams, Oscar Pettiford and the Jive Bombers. He toured Sweden in 1956 with Ernestine Anderson and Rolf Ericson. His greatest success came in the late 1950s in the play and movie The Connection, in which he both played and acted in New York City, London, and Paris. He also played on the soundtrack album. He has worked extensively with highly regarded musicians and recorded several albums as leader.

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New York based drummer and Grammy nominee Matt Wilson is one of todays most celebrated jazz artists. He is universally recognized for his musical and melodic drumming style as well as being a gifted composer, bandleader, producer, and teaching artist. Matt’s positive energy, sense of humor and ability to explore a broad range of musical settings keeps him in constant demand. In addition, Wilson’s dedication to jazz has helped establish him as a beloved world ambassador for the music, on and off the bandstand.

Recently, Matt performed at the White House as part of an all-star jazz group for a State Dinner concert hosted by President Obama. Other performers included Herbie Hancock, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Dianne Reeves, Chris Botti, Randy Brecker, Antonio Hart and James Genus. Matt was named the artist in residence at the Litchfield Jazz Festival where he conducted a much-heralded public interview with Dave Brubeck. In 2010, Wilson conducted over 250 outreach programs promoting jazz including an acclaimed Jazz for Young Peoples concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Wilson leads the Matt Wilson Quartet, Arts and Crafts, Christmas Tree-O and the Carl Sandburg Project. Matt is integral part of bands led by Joe Lovano, John Scofield, Charlie Haden, Lee Konitz, Bob Stewart, Denny Zeitlin, Ron Miles, Marty Ehrlich, Ted Nash, Jane Ira Bloom and Dena DeRose among others. He has performed with many legends of music including Herbie Hancock, Dewey Redman, Andrew Hill, Bobby Hutcherson, Elvis Costello, Cedar Walton, Kenny Barron, John Zorn, Marshall Allen, Wynton Marsalis, Michael Brecker, Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell and Hank Jones. Wilson has appeared on 250 CDs as a sideman and has released 9 as a leader for Palmetto Records as well as co-leading 5 additional releases.

Matt was featured on the covers of both Downbeat and JazzTimes magazines in November 2009 and was for 5 consecutive years voted #1 Rising Star Drummer in the Downbeat Critic’s Poll. The readers of JazzTimes recently chose him as one of the top 4 drummers in the 2010 Readers Poll. In 2003, he was voted Drummer of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association.

Brad Linde is a saxophonist, pianist, composer/arranger, educator and bandleader living in the Washington D.C. metro area. His approach to the saxophone and improvising has drawn comparison to the melodic nature and easy swing of modern jazz titans including Lester Young, Allen Eager, Wardell Gray, Zoot Sims, Warne Marsh, and Lucky Thompson.

Linde has performed with jazz greats such as Barry Harris, Butch Warren, Ted Brown, Eddie Bert, Jimmy Wormworth, Freddie Redd, Slide Hampton, and Dan Tepfer, Gretchen Parlato, Chris Byars, Ari Roland, John Mosca, Jon Metzger, and Jim Ketch. He has performed in Germany and Austria, and at the East Coast Jazz Festival, Duke Ellington Jazz Festival, The Smithsonian Institute, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Chris' Jazz Cafe in Philadelphia and Smalls Jazz Club in New York. He appears as a leader at D.C. jazz clubs including Blues Alley, U-topia, Bohemian Caverns, Twins Jazz and in Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and New York City.